DC-1c-2003D-01R Die Chip

Description

First reverse die chip cataloged for the 2003 Denver Mint Lincoln Memorial Cent, DC-1c-2003D-01R documents a small fracture on the die face bearing Frank Gasparro's Memorial reverse — the design that served Lincoln Cents from 1959 through 2008. Die chips differ from cuds in both location and scale: where a cud forms at the die rim from a large fracture, a die chip results from a small section of the die's interior surface breaking away, leaving a tiny cavity that fills with metal during striking. The raised bump produced on the coin is typically smaller and more localized than a cud, often requiring magnification to identify. The "R" suffix confirms the reverse die as the failure source, and the "01" sequence number marks this as the first such variety documented for the 2003-D date. The Memorial reverse design features the Lincoln Memorial building with its twelve columns and detailed architectural elements, and die chips can appear anywhere across this intricate design. Cataloged by Cuds on Coins, this variety represents one of thousands of minor die failure events that occur during the production of hundreds of millions of cents annually at the Denver facility.

Attribution History

• Cross reference number: none. 07/06/2018.
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References